1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a shipping kit for shipping diagnostic specimens in compliance with regulatory requirements. More particularly, the present invention relates to a diagnostic specimen shipping kit that is initially in collapsed, flattened form for convenient arrangement of a number of such kits as a shipping unit for shipment in a shipping container to a user. The kit contains components for assembling an insulated specimen shipment container and includes a source of coolant for placement within the container for maintaining specimens below a required temperature during shipment and prior to analysis of the specimens by an analytical laboratory.
2. Description of the Related Art
The shipment of diagnostic specimens must conform with specific shipping regulations imposed by the carrier of the shipment, for protection of those who handle the shipment during transit and also the general public. For example, the U.S. Postal Service has issued mailing standards in its Domestic Mail Manual, section 601.10.17 that identifies infectious or hazardous substances and prescribes packaging requirements for such materials. Thus, blood specimens and other bodily fluids for clinical laboratory testing are generally categorized as diagnostic specimens for the shipment of which the postal packaging regulations must be followed. The specimens must be packaged in accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 173.196.
Previous packaging for such materials was in the form of pre-formed package components. The individual, pre-formed components often were separately packaged. Additionally, the components as shipped to a user occupied considerable space and were therefore inconvenient and more costly to ship to a user of the packaging materials. Moreover, they often utilized rigid foam components to provide the desired protection against shock and impact damage and also to provide insulation value for control of the product temperature during shipment, which increased the size of the component packages as shipped to the user.
There is thus a need for an improved and more convenient shipping materials kit for use in connection with diagnostic specimen shipments. There is also a need to reduce the size of the package components that are provided to users and thereby to allow more economical shipment of the packaging components to the user, and also to provide the components of a single shipping unit in a ready-to-use single package. The present invention provides such an improved shipping kit.